


Laundry Lesson

by DancesWithSeatbelts



Series: NaLu Fever [4]
Category: Fairy Tail
Genre: F/M, Friendship, Humour, relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-07-21
Updated: 2014-07-21
Packaged: 2018-02-09 18:44:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,613
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1993764
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DancesWithSeatbelts/pseuds/DancesWithSeatbelts
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Lucy desires revenge for Natsu stealing her panties.  Laundry is his punishment, waiting for the wash to finish is boring - cards pass the time and Natsu introduces Lucy to Dragons Wild Poker.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Laundry Lesson

"Why? Why do I gotta do your laundry?" Natsu whined, "How come you're not making Happy help?"

Lucy stood with her arms crossed over her ample chest, glaring at her best friend. Through tight lips she answered. "It's to teach you a lesson on stealing panties. Happy is a cat and doesn't know any better. I expect more from you!"

"But Luce! It was his idea to play ninja!" He gave her a soulful look, eyes big and his lips slightly down-turned. "He started it! I would never have taken any if he hadn't done it first!"

Natsu yelped as Lucy reached over and pinched his arm. "Keep loading the machine. Don't think I'm gonna let you slack off." She had been so very furious to discover his 'dragon hoard' of her panties. Honestly, she'd begun to think underwear gnomes were walking off with them. Remembering the way they'd spilled out of Natsu's pillowcase was raising her blood pressure again. Lucy closed her eyes and took a few deep calming breaths.

The fire dragon slayer regained his good nature and he grinned happily at Lucy. "How much detergent do I gotta use?"

"A scoop." She tapped one foot and glared at the pink haired boy. "After you finish this load, you will dry it."

"Okay." He measured the soap and dumped it into the washer, closed the lid and turned it on. "Want to play some cards?"

"I'm still mad at you!" The blonde girl scowled into the beaming face of the boy. "You're not going to jolly me out of your punishment!"

"I wouldn't dream of it Luce!" Natsu's smile became brighter as he sensed his friend weakening. "We can play for chores!"

She narrowed her eyes at Natsu, "Chores? Like if I win at cards, you clean my house?"

"Yup! If I win you could do chores for me!" He pulled a deck of cards out of his pocket. "How 'bout we play Dragons Wild Poker?"

"What makes it Dragons Wild?" Lucy was intrigued despite herself. She'd participated in enough card games with Natsu to know he took cards very seriously but she'd never heard of this variant of poker.

"You gotta drink shots to discard, but it's nor really that wild until the end of the game." Natsu nodded and gestured toward the coffee table. "You want I should set up over there?"

Lucy sighed, "All right. We've got about half an hour to kill. Deal us a hand and I'll get a bottle and shot glasses."

"Don't worry! It'll be fun!"

"Yah, I've heard that before!" Lucy returned with the booze and dropped onto the couch. "What else should I know about this game?"

"The forfeits gotta be paid right after the game ends." Natsu explained, "That's what makes it wild!" He shuffled and dealt out five cards each. "We play for points - first person to five wins. Each round is worth a point, the strongest hand winning after two sets of discards."

Lucy gathered them up and sighed noisily. She removed two cards and slid them face-down on the table and grinned weakly. "I could use two good cards, Natsu!"

"Hah! That's two shots for you Luce!" He poured the drinks after passing her two new cards. Natsu perused his own cards and smirked. "Did I mention after each round the winner gets to add a wild rule?"

She downed her shots and gasped, "Fine! I've got lots of ideas for wild rules!" Lucy arched an eyebrow at Natsu and chuckled evilly. "I hope you like scrubbing, because I see lots of that in your future."

Confidently, Natsu discarded one and poured himself a shot. He drew a fresh card and smugly asked Lucy if she needed another exchange.

"No, I'm good."

Natsu consumed his shot and gloated, "I'm good too - I have some pretty ladies in my hand..." He laid out his cards. Three queens and the five of spade and three of clubs.

"Oh, so how do you feel about losing?" Lucy cackled. She spread her cards out to reveal a straight.

"I feel fine, because we're best friends and you'd never abuse the trust I have in you." Natsu gave Lucy his most angelic smile.

"I call bullshit!" Lucy almost choked on her laughter.

Natsu lost his composure and started laughing as well, "It was worth a shot! You got lucky with the first hand, but think careful about the wild rule you add, because it's binding for the both of us."

"Mmmm, well in that case...let's make discards cost two shots for the boys playing the game." Lucy's smile was acidly sweet and her eyes gleamed with mischief.

"You're smart and sneaky, Luce!" Natsu guffawed loudly. "Just wait until I win a hand!"

"Yah, yah. Let me deal this hand." Lucy scooped the cards together and shuffled the cards, rapidly dealing another hand. She glanced at her cards and allowed a disturbing smile to creep across her face.

Natsu watched Lucy with a sinking feeling. "Ah, I want two cards this time." Without a word, she gave him the requested cards and poured four shots and pushed them over to his side of the table. Manfully, he gulped them down, shuddering at the alcohol burn.

"H-how about you? You need to discard?"

"Just one." Lucy poured and exchanged her card.

Beginning to feel the effects of the shots, Natsu felt muzzy. He decided to stand with the cards he had. "I'm fine with what I got, how about you?"

"Actually, I think I'll take one more." Lucy slipped one card onto the discard pile and dealt herself a new one.

Natsu reached over and poured her a shot, pushing it unsteadily across the table so that it sloshed a bit. "Drink up Luce! You don't want to have to penalty drink!"

"You never mentioned that!" She slammed the two shots waiting for her, choking and gasping at the strong taste. "I've got two pair." Lucy flipped her cards up and smirked.

"Oh, how about that, me too!" Natsu chortled, "My two pair happens to beat yours though! We're even at one point each. For my wild dragon rule, every two card is wild."

He pulled the cards over to himself and shuffled. His eyes a little glassy, he dealt the cards and checked what he had.

Lucy could feel the effects of the alcohol making her feel warm and unsteady. "Natsu, can we make this hand the decider? I don't think I can drink much more right now, and you've had more than me anyway."

"You're lucky I'm feeling mangna-mangnamama-nice, Luce! This will decide the winner and the loser!"

"Yah, you're drunk." Lucy giggled, "You tried to say mangnannanamous! Gimme one card!"

"Okay," Natsu poured her discard shot and two for himself. "I'm only exchanging one card too."

Feeling overly warm, Lucy fanned herself with her cards. She dropped them facedown and grabbed her drink, raising it over the table towards Natsu. "To my best friend!" She knocked it back and slammed the empty shot glass down on the coffee table.

Natsu grinned and poured his drinks down his throat, shuddering after from the strong aftertaste. He dealt the additional cards and checked his hand. "I'm good, so good - what you got?"

"I've got luck on my side, how 'bout you, Pinky?" Lucy laughed even harder at the face Natsu pulled at being called 'Pinky'.

"I have awesome cards." He blinked slowly and hiccupped.

"Bwah hahaha!" Lucy slapped her hand on her knee and rocked back and forth. "You ready for the reveal? On the count of three, one...two...three!"

Each mage slapped down their cards.

Each mage stared befuddled at their cards.

Lucy was the first to speak, "The odds of this happening must be astronominomical!"

"Un-be-freaking-lievable!" Natsu slurred.

"It's a tie - now what?" Lucy squinted at Natsu, "You're blurry around the edges."

"Weirdo! Let's draw one card to see who wins. I'll let you shuffle and deal - loser wears a maid costume to clean the other person's house."

"Sounds super!"

"I'm all fired up!"

Lucy shuffled the cards, mixing them for a full minute. Finally she set the deck down and flipped the first card over for Natsu. It was the nine of hearts. He pouted as Lucy smirked at the relatively low valued card. Her grin faded at the nine of clubs she revealed for herself.

"Lemme shuffle and deal another tie breaker." Natsu grabbed the cards and began to carefully shuffle them. He turned over the top card for Lucy and revealed the Jack of spades.

"Oh! Good for me! You're gonna look fine in that short skirt!"

"For shit's sake!" Natsu's card was the Jack of diamonds. "If we tie one more time it's like we both win, right?"

Natsu drew a card from the remaining deck and turned it face up to reveal the king of clubs. "This one's mine, Luce! I'm gonna win!"

"We'll see!" Lucy flipped over the king of spades. Her expression went from disappointment, to disbelief. "What the hell! That's it! A total and complete tie!" She rubbed her eyes with her knuckles and re-checked the cards laying on the table. Yup, another tie.

"Oi! Luce! We're both winners!" Natsu eagerly shouted, "You gotta clean my house wearing the maid outfit!" He blinked owlishly and finished thinking. "You won too, so I have to clean your house wearing the maid outfit..."

"Yah, that makes sense." Lucy giggled louder. "I wanna wear the maid outfit first before you get man stink on it."

"I always knew you liked cosplay!" Natsu thumped the table in his drunken excitement and made the cards jump and a few fly off.

"What? No it doesn't! I just don't want to put on clothes you've worn!"

"You already have!"

"Huh? Like what? When?" Lucy pushed the table back a bit and scattered more of the cards.

"Well, Happy uses your panties for ninja hats! I wore your cheerleader cosplay outfit."

"I don't have one of those." Lucy hiccupped and glared at the pink haired boy.

"Yah, you do. You wore it yesterday - all you need to complete the outfit is some pom-poms!" Natsu smirked and laughed louder and louder as he remembered some of the many times they'd raided Lucy's closets and drawers.

"That's not a cheerleader outfit! That's my favourite blue skirt and matching white shirt. I wondered why the shoulders were stretched! Baka! It took three times through the laundry to feel right again! That reminds me, you've gotta dry the laundry. I bet it's done - get up!" Lucy stumbled off the couch and pulled on Natsu, leading him to the washer. He was steadier on his feet than his partner, but walking in an exaggerated motion - as if trying to pretend sobriety.

"What did you need burned, I mean dried?" Natsu slurred.

He coated his hand in flame and Lucy shrieked, "I changed my mind! You don't have to dry the laundry."

Squinting at Lucy, Natsu pouted. "I gotta learn my lesson 'bout stealing panties. How can I make it up to you if you don't let me?"

"Just do it without magic! Hang'em up on," Lucy dragged a wooden clothes rack out from the space between the wall and washer, "this." She narrowed her eyes and settled her hands on her hips. "You said the forfeits gotta be paid right after the game but I don't feel like running out to your house right now."

Slowly and carefully, Natsu draped the damp clothes on the laundry rack. He shrugged and continued to finish his task. "You sure you don't want me to toast'em dry?" He waggled his fingers in readiness, "It'd take a second."

Lucy playfully swatted his hand, "Nope, I like my house to not burn down around my ears. Let's clean houses tomorrow - "

"I told you the rules say the forfeits gotta be paid out right after the game ends!"

"We can make our own rules! You said the game was Dragons Wild, and after each round the winner could add their own wild rule. We drew three times and tied three times, so that's six rules we never made..." Lucy's brows drew in together as she concentrated. "You would've made your rule first, then I would've countered it... we can either make up three rounds of wild rules or assume I'd cancel out your dumb ideas..."

Natsu stared in complete befuddlement as his blonde partner rambled on and on. "I'm not sure what you're blabbering on about, but okay - we clean houses tomorrow wearing the maid outfit. I get to make one more wild rule and so do you." He grabbed Lucy's hand and dragged her to the living room, letting go he dropped onto the couch. Lightly tugging, he pulled her down to sit beside him. "Ladies first." He grinned and let his arm drape around his partner's shoulders.

Lucy turned to him with suspicion. "Is this a trick?"

"Aw Luce! Why you gotta be like that? Dragon scout promise!"

"Hey! That's not a real thing!" Lucy sputtered, "Now I know you're up to something!"

"Fine! I'll go first - but I need another drink, and so do you." He leaned forward and sloshed two measures into the shot glasses. He placed one in Lucy's unresisting hand and clinked his against it. "Kanpai!" Both mages gulped down their shots. "For my wild rule, I want you to tell me a bedtime story - tonight!"

"You still on that?" Lucy asked incredulously.

"Yah, you won't let me read the stuff you let Levy read. So I wanna have something you wrote for me." Natsu pouted. He should have looked ridiculous with his crossed arms and his stuck out lip. Lucy thought it was kinda nice. Huh, he's jealous that Levy gets to read my writing first.

She sat silent for a minute until Natsu poked her bicep with a finger.

"You still in there?"

"Okay, I can write you a story - but my wild rule will give me some time to come up with one." Lucy smirked, pleased to have partially countered his demand.

"Well, don't take too long or who knows what'll happen to your clothes next..."

Natsu jumped up and ran around the room as Lucy shrieked and chased him. Both mages were laughing and taunting each other until Happy flew in wearing one of Lucy's bras on his head.

"I'm gonna get you, you shitty cat!"

"He's just a cat and doesn't know any better."

"Don't you dare use my words against me!" Lucy glared at Happy who was perched on top of a cupboard in the kitchen and swivelled to give the same blast of anger towards Natsu who was peering out from behind the bathroom door. Spying the broom in the corner of the room, Lucy dashed across the kitchen and hoisted it, much as like Erza would carry a sword.

"Wah! Lucy's gonna kill us! Run for your life Natsu! I'm leaving!" Happy streaked out of Lucy's apartment at maximum velocity leaving his buddy to face the celestial mage's wrath on his own.

"See you bright and early tomorrow Luce! I'll have your maid outfit cleaned and ready for you - I'll drag you outta bed if you sleep in." Natsu shouted these words through Lucy's front door and then ran home.

"For shit's sake - all I wanted was him to learn a lesson, and now doing laundry has turned into housecleaning." Lucy dropped the broom and stumbled over to the couch and sat down. She frowned fiercely, then considered how silly their evening had been and began laughing uncontrollably. He's an idiot, but my best idiot friend.


End file.
